Tuesday, July 4, 2017

The value of freedom

When Abraham Lincoln was brought the Emancipation
Proclamation to sign, he started several times to sign the document but stopped
each time and dropped the pen. In answer to Secretary Seward's quizzical look,
Lincoln said, "I have been shaking hands since nine o'clock this morning,
and my right arm is almost paralyzed. If my name ever goes into history, it
will be for this act, and my whole soul is in it. If my hand trembles when I
sign the Proclamation, all who examine the document hereafter will say: He hesitated.'"